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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28178091">I Hope You Watch From Above</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/myshipsareendgame/pseuds/myshipsareendgame'>myshipsareendgame</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Cosmere - Brandon Sanderson, Stormlight Archive - Brandon Sanderson</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Angst, Book 03: Oathbringer, Book 03: Oathbringer Spoilers, Emotional, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Engagement, F/M, Family, Family Feels, Family Fluff, Father-Son Relationship, Fluff, Happy Ending, Hurt/Comfort, Missing Scene</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-12-19</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-19</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 00:40:55</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,534</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28178091</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/myshipsareendgame/pseuds/myshipsareendgame</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>A knock on the door.</p><p>Dalinar cracked an eyelid open begrudgingly. “Come in!”</p><p>Blond hair peppered with black poked through the door. “Father? Can we talk?”</p><p> </p><p>The night after the Battle of Thaylenah, Dalinar remembers his late wife. However, memories are replaced from his thoughts once he realizes he has an important topic to talk about with his son.</p><p> </p><p>[A continued and edited version of I Hope You Watch From Above on tumblr]</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Adolin Kholin &amp; Dalinar Kholin, Dalinar Kholin/Navani Kholin, Dalinar Kholin/Shshshsh | Evi Kholin, Shallan Davar/Adolin Kholin</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>28</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>I Hope You Watch From Above</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Dalinar felt so tired. So, so, so tired.</p><p>He had been to hundreds of battles. He had so much blood on his hands that no water could wash them. </p><p>But this? This was a battle of his body, mind and soul. In all his long years of life, nothing could have prepared him for the power that coursed through his veins. It was something he could have never fathomed and something that even know, hours later and resting on a sofa in his sitting room, couldn’t wrap his head around.</p><p>They would have to face Odium again. But hopefully by that time, Thaylenah would start to repair and heal, and he would know at least a little more to the power he held today.</p><p>Navani had gone to bed about half an hour ago. The entire day after the battle, she had held him so lovingly, so gently, the way only a woman like her could. He would drink her scent in, calming himself. She said she would wait for him to come into their room to fall asleep, but knowing her, she was probably snoring already.</p><p>What kept him up were, of course, his thoughts. Memories. He kept replaying those three words in his head.</p><p>
  <em>I forgive you.</em>
</p><p>Somehow, Evi had spoken to him. That sweet, gentle voice had broke through the walls of this world, and his soul, and it saved him. Hours passed, and it seemed that that voice didn’t just save him but also did something else - it filled him with a strange sense of nostalgia.</p><p>He remembered their first weeks of marriage and how unexpectedly content they were. He remembered the stark contrast of fighting and screaming during the day and coming to his tent at night to find his wife and sons smiling. Waiting.</p><p>For once, in a long time, the memories were happy. And he didn’t know what to make of it. </p><p>But, what Dalinar did know was that he needed sleep. Maybe tomorrow he would think better. He closed his eyes right there in the sitting room, feeling the heat coming from the fireplace. </p><p>A knock on the door.</p><p>Dalinar cracked an eyelid open begrudgingly. “Come in!”</p><p>Blond hair peppered with black poked through the door. “Father? Can we talk?” Adolin was in his nightclothes. Black pants that went a bit loosely at his thighs and a simple, white shirt he must’ve thrown on for the sake of convenience. </p><p>Dalinar wanted to ask him to leave. He was not so eager for a conversation, but judging by the time and the fact that Adolin couldn’t wait until morning, Dalinar figured it must have been important. And so he motioned for him to a sofa opposite his own and did what a parent should.</p><p>“What is it, son?”</p><p>Adolin scratched the back of his neck. “I’ll keep it as simple as possible.“ Dalinar nodded, taken back by the decisiveness in his tone. “Today in Shadesmar, I was wounded. I thought I was dying. All these years, I thought that your whole life would flash in front of your eyes. Mine didn’t. I could only see two people clutching over me as I begged for a knife.”</p><p>
  <em>Storms, why did I agree to listen to this?</em>
</p><p>Dalinar couldn’t look at him. He <em>could</em> bear to listen, but he couldn’t look at that youthful face, those eyes, and not feel pain. Pain that he could have lost his son today. He pushed himself to look at him as a general would at a soldier, but, when it came down to it, even if his son was fully a man, he was still his child. </p><p>“After the battle, I thought about what had happened. How lucky I am to be alive. Then, I found Shallan. We talked, we laughed, we kissed. And as I held her in my arms, I realized something. I realized how often she makes me smile and how often I make her smile and how happy I get when I see it. How much I... desire her and how much I need her.”</p><p>Dalinar spared him a look, then smiled. “I’m very happy you two found each other.” Navani thought so too, and he couldn’t help but think, with sadness, how much Evi would have been eager to meet the girl. He had a feeling that she’d be fond of her spontaneous behavior. </p><p>Adolin nodded slowly and kracked his knuckles. Dalinar got closer. “Just a few months ago, I wanted so many women.” Oh, he knew that. How could anyone forget? His son used to change his partners as if he was dancing to a particularly fast music, as he liked to say. Coming to morning meetings with hair messier than usual and purple marks on his neck.  It was a tough experience for him as a father, that was for sure. </p><p>“Now, I only want one woman. I want Shallan so much that I cannot imagine a day where I wouldn’t want her. The only thing I want more than her, is to spend the rest of my life with her.”</p><p>Something in Dalinar’s mind clicked. It was like all the energy he felt was drained from him on the battlefield today had come back just to put everything together. Why Adolin had come in here so late, looking unusually thoughtful. What he came to ask of Dalinar.</p><p>Adolin licked his lips nervously. </p><p>“Son?” Dalinar managed to let out.</p><p>“The reason I came here is because... it’s because I need the family ring.” Adolin sighed deeply. “Father, I am going to ask Shallan to marry me.”</p><p>Oh.</p><p>
  <em>Oh.</em>
</p><p>Dalinar pulled him in for a hug. He pulled him tightly and held him until he could feel his son’s arms around him and after that. And as much as he held him, it could not be enough to replace the touch of the woman who should have been there.</p><p>Evi should have been here to see this. She should have been there way back when Renarin got his first fit. She should have been there when Adolin had his first heartbreak. She should have been there when their boys were growing up.</p><p>He wished there was a way to turn back the clock, or at least bring her to this world so she could see, even for a few seconds, the men their sons turned into. He wished she could see the gleam in Renarin’s eyes at the scribe meetings, the jokes he makes with Bridge Four or the playful bumps he gives his brother. He wished she could see Adolin’s genuine, open smile whenever he talks of dueling or horses. His eagerness to help.</p><p>But most of all he wished there was some way he could tell her that the goodness in their hearts is all because of her.</p><p>“Your mother would have loved Shallan...” He found himself wobbling as he pulled back. Storms, when did he start crying? Oh, but they weren’t all tears of sadness, not completely.</p><p>There was joy. So much joy.</p><p>”You think so?”Adolin smiled as he asked.</p><p>”Yes”, Dalinar answered with a chuckle. “Pretty sure she’d love her more than you.”</p><p>“If it’s even possible”, Adolin added quietly. Then he looked up at Dalinar. There was so much in his eyes: passion and love, respect and admiration. But for some reason, Dalinar saw in those eyes a sense of youth, a shimmer that’s forever lively and oh-so bright.</p><p>He ruffled his hair, making it even more messy. “My boy. Getting married.”</p><p>The boy blushed. It was cherishable to see someone that’s usually so confident and relaxed in such a state. “Well, hopefully. You think she’ll say yes?”</p><p>Dalinar thought for a moment. Would the young brightlady Davar agree? Was he going to soon welcome a daughter into his family? “I think that when you find the right person with whom you want to be with, you should do something about it. Now, getting married is a big decision. It takes courage to make it, but from what I’ve seen and heard about Shallan, she is very brave. And I do think she loves you too.”</p><p>His son grinned and simply thanked him. They got up, Adolin ready to head out and Dalinar escorting him to the door and promising to deliver the family ring as soon as possible. </p><p>As Dalinar closed the door, he felt better. As if there was something lifted off his cheast, and was ready to go to bed. Couple of emotional memories, tears and an engagement announcement later, Dalinar no longer kept replaying Evi’s words. Perhaps he’d replay them again in a few days. Then again. And again, always repeating. But tonight, there was something else with which he could fall asleep to, a happy thought or a thought for happiness yet to come.</p><p> </p><p>If there was one thing that Evi was to represent for him from now on, it was hope. Hope for redemption, hope for a better world. Hope for happiness and a better future.</p><p>These were decisions that would celebrate a new era in the Kholin family and one that, he would pray for day and night, Evi would watch from above.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p>
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